Case studies

Devon & Cornwall Railcard

14th March 2024
Devon & Cornwall Railcard - £12 a year - where will you go?
We've helped make the Devon & Cornwall Railcard the first regional railcard in the UK to be available as a digital product. Local residents can now either store the railcard on their phone, order a physical railcard online and have it posted to them, or head to their local station ticket office to buy the railcard in the traditional way. Read more.

CreativiTea trains

8th October 2019
Poet Sally Crabtree sings with local school children on the Creativitea train
CASE STUDY | Find out about our inter-generational tea parties on the train to explore memories of the railway and bring people together. The project won the "Best Community Engagement" category at the national Community Rail Awards.

Looe Valley Line heritage project

8th October 2019
Historical photo of staff at Looe station - courtesy of The National Archives
CASE STUDY | We worked with the local community to tell the hidden stories of the past 160 years on the Looe Valley Line. We produced video documentaries, a mobile phone app, interpretation boards and more to bring history to life.

Gunnislake tiles project

8th October 2019
New artwork tiles at Gunnislake station - one of the young artists poses with the tile beaering his portrait
CASE STUDY | The Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership worked with the local community to replace damaged and decrepit tiles at Gunnislake with creative and durable new works of art.

Foodie Guides

26th June 2018
Launch of Avocet Line Foodie Guide
CASE STUDY | We have launched Foodie Guides for four branch lines to highlight food businesses along each route that champion local produce and sustainability, and to inspire rail travel to the area.

Carbon Reduction Challenge

15th June 2017
CASE STUDY | The Carbon Reduction Challenge was an inter-schools competition to encourage local schools to swap car journeys for train journeys to reduce their carbon footprint.

Seize The Sunday

9th June 2017
CASE STUDY | When a long-held aspiration is close to being achieved, it’s important to seal the deal – and that’s exactly what happened on the Avocet Line (Exeter-Exmouth) when our marketing campaign led to a 22% jump in Sunday journeys.

The Munchtime Express

4th September 2016
CASE STUDY | Local restaurants gain great publicity and the chance to interact with potential customers face-to-face thanks to our annual Munchtime Express campaign. Read more

Rail Ale Trails

15th January 2016
CASE STUDY | With widespread pub closures an issue of national concern, the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership supports nearly a hundred real ale pubs through our Rail Ale Trail scheme.

EU Citizens’ Rail project

7th January 2016
CASE STUDY | We were lead partner in the EU Citizens’ Rail project, which ran from 2012 to 2015. The project worked in five regions in North West Europe to put into practice the ‘community rail’ approach developed in the UK over the past 20 years.

Exeter St Thomas Eco Garden

25th November 2015
CASE STUDY | As part of our EU Citizens’ Rail project, we worked with the Friends of Exeter St Thomas Station and a range of partner organisations to develop an Eco Garden to enhance the station.

Great Scenic Railways website

3rd October 2015
CASE STUDY | Great Scenic Railways is the Partnership’s tourism-focused website, promoting the branch lines to more than 75,000 tourists and local day trippers each year.

Minibeast Trail on The Riviera Line

8th August 2015
CASE STUDY | As part of our EU Citizens’ Rail project, the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership created a “Minibeast Trail” on The Riviera Line (Exeter-Paignton) to encourage young families to try the train.

Beer mat promotion with CAMRA

17th July 2015
CASE STUDY | We joined forces with the Campaign for Real Ale to encourage pub goers in Exeter and South Devon to travel by train, using beer mats bearing the message ‘Get here on the Riviera Line’.

Visit Poldark country by train

20th June 2015
CASE STUDY | We've worked with Visit Cornwall, the National Trust and other regional partners to tap into popular culture with our "Visit Poldark country by train" campaign.

Half-price promotion on the Tarka Line

25th May 2015
CASE STUDY | A half-price offer agreed with Great Western Railway (GWR) and promoted by the Partnership led to a 37% increase in people visiting Barnstaple during the off-season.

Student masterclasses

18th April 2015
CASE STUDY | Through our EU Citizens’ Rail project, we have participated in a pair of international student masterclasses to generate new ideas for the rail industry.

Take your teddy on the train

25th February 2015
CASE STUDY | Our promotion with Great Western Railway (GWR) that allows children accompanied by an adult to travel free if they bring a teddy bear with them on their journey (during specified periods only).

Love Looe campaign

19th November 2014
CASE STUDY | The Love Looe campaign brought together local tourism businesses to raise the profile of Looe, following negative coverage of the area in 2012/2013 due to flooding, road closures and landslides.

Friends of Dawlish Station

10th October 2014
CASE STUDY | The previously dormant Friends of Dawlish Station volunteer group was rejuvenated as part of the Partnership’s EU Citizens’ Rail project, making headlines and even meeting the Prime Minister.